By Bevan Shields & Michael Koziol

September 5, 2018 — 11.00pm

An ethical standards team has questioned the Queensland policeman who asked Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton for help in a foreign au pair case, and have sent a report to the state's corruption watchdog despite finding "no evidence" of misconduct.

Fairfax Media can reveal Russell Keag, who worked alongside Mr Dutton in the Queensland Police Service in the 1990s, was recently scrutinised by the Ethical Standards Command over his role in the au pair scandal dogging the Morrison government.

Illustration: Matt Golding

An Italian au pair destined to work for Mr Keag and wife Nicole was detained by Border Force officials at Brisbane airport in July 2015 because her intention to work breached her tourist visa. After a series of correspondence, the minister overturned the advice of his own department to grant the woman a visa.

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A letter from Queensland Police Service commissioner Ian Stewart, marked 'confidential', shows the recent media frenzy over Mr Dutton's actions in that case - and another involving AFL boss Gillon McLachlan - prompted the Queensland police officer to tell a supervisor about his connection to the affair.

After making the disclosure, Mr Keag "took part in a disciplinary record of interview in which he was directed to answer questions," Mr Stewart wrote in the letter dated August 31.

"The matter was referred to the Ethical Standards Command for assessment by a senior commissioned officer who concluded that there was no evidence of misconduct by the officer with respect to the granting of the visa to the student.

"This outcome has been reported to the Crime and Corruption Commission as the relevant corruption oversight body in Queensland."

Mr Stewart outlined the previously unknown events in a letter to the parliamentary committee probing Mr Dutton's actions. He did so in the interests of "transparency and accountability", but urged the document not be made public given the officer had come forward with the information and there had been no evidence of misconduct.

Queensland Police Service commissioner Ian Stewart.Credit:Glenn Hunt

While five other submissions were made to the Senate inquiry into Mr Dutton, the Queensland Police Service letter was the only one deemed worthy of confidentiality.

Mr Keag was known to Mr Dutton from their time together in the Queensland Police Service, where the minister worked during the 1990s before going into business and entering Parliament in 2001.

Mr Dutton previously said he has not spoken to Mr Keag for two decades, and there is no suggestion Mr Dutton stepped beyond his broad powers as a minister to seek advice and intervene in visa decisions.

In a statement, Queensland Police said: "These matters are currently under consideration by the federal Senate inquiry. It is therefore inappropriate to comment while that process is ongoing." The Crime and Corruption Commission would not comment. Mr Keag has previously declined to comment on the au pair matter.

Wednesday's inquiry also heard the AFL chief executive, Mr McLachlan, had previously sought help from the government on another visa matter - this time involving an Argentinian polo player who was "a friend of a friend".

Mr McLachlan said he asked the AFL's government relations manager Jude Donnelly - who worked for Tony Abbott while he was opposition leader - to check on the polo player's visa application in March 2014.

Then in 2015, Ms Donnelly facilitated a request for help by Mr McLachlan's cousin Callum MacLachlan regarding a French au pair detained by border patrol at Adelaide airport.

She said she made "probably two" phone calls to Mr Dutton's chief-of-staff on a Sunday, as well as emailing him, having obtained his mobile number through a contact in then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull's office.

Labor senator Murray Watt said the revelation showed "people in high places can go through the back door and get special treatment".

But Labor senators failed to uncover any evidence of wrongdoing by Mr Dutton during three-hours of questioning to the Department of Home Affairs.